Die



Sept. 23, 1952 G. w. STOCKBURGER 2,611,522

' DIE I Original Filed March 5, 1947 I 4 Sheet s-Sheet 1 I F ,INVENTOR.v 65036 k/J-mmwwm v a. w. STOCKBURGER DIE Sept. 23, 1952 4 Sheets-Sheet2 Original Filed March 5 1947 INVENTOR. 650%: M

SracmunaER ATM RNEY P 1952 G. w. STOCKBURGER 2,611,522

DIE

Original Filed march 5, 1947 4 Sheets-Sheet :s

INVENTOR. GEoRaEVSTa k GER ATTORNEY Sept. 23, 1952 G. w. STOCKBURGER DIE4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Original Filed March 5, 1947 IN VEN TOR.

0A My W i M M J m 6 M f 6 Patented Sept. 23, 1952 I UNITED STATESPATQSENT osmos- DIE George W. Stockburger, Philadelphia, Pa.

Substituted for abandoned application Serial No. 732,553, March 5, 1947.This application July 9, 1951, Serial No. 235,865

has vexed manufacturers, suppliers and users of containers for manyyears. The closures must adhere tightly to the containers to preventefilux of the contents andto prevent influx of foreign matter, and yetthey must be readilyremovable by the ultimate consumer's hands or by thesimple tools available to the ultimate consumer. Some of the closureshave had discs of cork or other resilient material which were held incontact with the mouths of the containers by metal caps that fitted overthe outsides ofthe containers. Others consisted of circular discs thatfitted recesses adjacent the mouths of the containers, and thoseclosures were held in place by friction. Still other closureswere'hood-like in form and fitted over the necks of the containers; andthose closures were held in placeby being crimped or pressed against thecontainers. In addition, closures have been used that were of resilientmaterial and ,fitted into or over the mouths of containers and were heldin place by friction. Each of these various closures is usable withvarying degrees of success, but none of them is completely satisfactoryfrom the standpoints of cost, tightness, ready removability, andprotection against contamination of the contents of the containers. As aresult, a definite need existed for an improved closure for containers;that need was met by the invention disclosed in my application forLetters Patent, Serial No. 772,378, for Receptacle Closure,'now PatentNo. 2,586,446.

When closures, made in accordance with said invention, are pressedagainst containers in the presence of heat, those closures become firmlysealed and attached to the containers in such a way that they completelyprotect the contents of the containers but are themselves readilyremoved from the containers when desired. "Those but must be smallenough to avoid injury to the containers. It is therefore necessary tohave a heated die that provides a firm, controlled pressure against theclosures while the closures are heated to the required temperature; Thepresent invention provides such a die and it is therefore an object ofthe present invention to provide a die that heats closures forcontainers while applying a firm, controlled pressure to those closuresr y The die'provided by the present invention has a closure-receivingrecess anda number of extensible andretractible fingers adjacent thatrecess. The fingers and the recess are suitably heated and serve toapply'heat to the top and sides of the closures, thus insuring rapid andeven heating of the closures. This facilitates the attainment of a goodseal between the closures and the containers and also permits rapidapplication of the closures to the containers. It is therefore an objectof the present invention to provide a die that has a heated recess toact against the tops of closures and has heated fingers to act againstthe sides of the closures.

Containers which hold their contents under pressure, and are closed byreadily removable closures, are generally provided with enlargedportions adjacent the mouths thereof, and those enlarged portions areuseful in facilitating the securing of closures to the containers. Forexample, in many instances thelower portions of the containers areinitially provided with inner diameters greater than the. outerdiameters of the enlarged portions of the containers and, during theoperation wherein the closures are affixed to the containers, the lowerportions of the closures are slipped over the enlarged portions of thecontainers and are then made to have inner diameters which are smallerthan the outer diameters of the enlarged portions of the containers;this prevents undesired separation of the closures from the containers.Where the closures are made of flexible material, as are the closures ofmy application Serial No. 772,378, it is desirable to iron and smooththe lower portions of the closures against thecontainers. The

die of the present invention acts to iron and smooth the lower portionsof the closures against the containers by providing a plurality of.circumierentially spaced, radially acting fingers that urge the lowerportions of the closures against the containers. These fingers" are notconfined in guides but are, free to move circumferentially as well asradially and this circumferential movement facilitates smoothing andironing of the the present invention to provide a die with a pluralityof radially and circumferentially movable fingers.

In securing closures to containers by the use of pressure and heat it isnecessary "to force the closures against the containers without delayand then to hold the closures against the containers by means ofpressure until the closures are firmly sealed to the containers. Theseconsiderations must be coupled with the considerationfoigcushioning theterm applied to the closures and "to the containers. The die provided bythe present invention affords prompt contact between thepressure-applying fingers and -the closures and yetcus'hions the'iorceapplied by those "fingers to the closures and containers Thyproviding a plurality of cams that ,pa's'sfloe'twe'en Spring-biased pinsand the pressure-applying fingers. Tl'l' cams cooperate with thespring-biased pins to move the fingers toward the containers withoutdelay but the springs thataet upon 'thepins will yield before the forceson the fingers can increase to values at which the containers would beinjured. .Itis therefore an, object of the pr'es ent invention"toprovid'ea die'vvhich has 'a number of'cams that pass betweenlspr'ingbiase'dfpins and pressure-applyingfingers. v

Where a dieis used to apply closures to bottles containingcoinest'ibles. as in a dairy or brewery, it is of the'utrnos'timportance {that the die have its parts readily acc'essiblefo'r cleaningpurposes. Moreover, it is 'impcrtant'tha't no part of'the die have aconfiguration or form which would cause it to batch and hold dirt orother foreign'matter. The present invention providesTsuch a die byhaving'allpar t's thereof free-draining and readily washable. It is thereforeIanqbject of the present invention to have a die 'whiohh'as all'partsthereof free-draining and readily'was'ha'ble.

Many closures ro'r containers consistot'a pr'eformed metal cup thatisprovided with an inner disc of resilient'materi'ah Inapplyingsuchclosures to'cont'a'iner it is only necessary to fplace the closures onthe tops of'the'containers and I strike them with an uninterruptedannulus. Such dies canbe made'quite compactly and in many instancesmachines farefmade which have a number 'ofsuch die-sin closely spacedrelation. In order to replace the closures and "dies of this type, itnecessary that a new closure and the die therefor be of such size that"a number of the dies canbe inserted and operated in the machines builtfor the present annulus type of'dies.

The present. invention provides such "adie by utilizing a compacthousing that supports the movable fingers andhas leaf springs mounted onthe exterior thereof to bias the pins carried by the housing.

Other and further objects and advantages of the present invention shouldbecome apparent from the drawing and accompanyin description.

In the drawing and accompanyingdescription a preferred embodiment of thepresent'invention is shown and described but it is tobe understood the.principles and teachings of the present in vention, I v

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a cup-shaped housing that is a part ofthe die shown in Fig. i, Fig. 3 is a plan view of the cup-shaped housingof Fig. 2, and it shows the fingers or jaws of the dig inretractedposition Within said housing,

sass side elevational view of the fingers or jaw's show n in-Fig. 4,

Fig. 6 is. a side elevational view of a castellated member which isnormally positioned within the cup-shaped housing of Fig. 2, p

Fig. '7 is a plan view j'df v the ca-steliateri mem ber'shown in'Fig.6,;

Fig. 8 is 'a bottom Fig. "1, I I 7 7 v Fig. 9 is a plan viewbf -a caihcarrier'usedfwith View of tile shown in the dieof Fig.1, I

Fig. frills a sideelevational view cfth'e earn carrierofFig.9 'and j J tFig.* 11 is a ve' ica-l centralsectional view oi the diefshown i' 1.

j Refeifringt edrawing finf'detail. the numeral 2 0 jdenot'esacup-shaped housing {that is a part of a-die madeinjaccordance withthe'principles andteachings of the' prese'nt invention. The cup shap'edmanager has a centralfiopening 22 in the bottom thereof, and it also*hasaa plurality of circunrferentiaflly spacedopeningsffit in the bottomthereof. The centralopening 322 will he dimensioned to receive ft-he'mouth "of the container that-is tq'loeprovided with a closure and themouth "of that container will extend up through the opening dainto the-space within the housing 20; Tliedie provided hythe-present inventioncan apply and-seal closures to beer bottles, milk :bottles, jell'yglasses, fruit jars, metal OT earthenware containers, and to many othertypesand' -kiridsfof 'containers,-and me ts case the opening fi in-thehousin he "will -be dimensioned to receive the mouth-"of the "cortainerwith which thef die is to he used. The openings {2} are acedoutwardlyfrom'the' central opening 2i2 ,fandfthey are-alleduidistant from the"geometriccenter 0f the housing 212. n numher of radial-iy-di'spose'd,'sinooth-bore, "circular openings 26 areprovided in the "side wallof-"the housing "123, and those "openings receive reciproeating pins as,Tlhmop'enin'gs "26 "are *l'ocated'at the ends of radii which-passthrough the 'open ings 24 and the inner ends er "the'pins 28 overlie thecircumferentially -spaced openings 'j4. The outer ends of the *are"provided with enlarged heads that will not pass tlrrougl'i the openings26 finfthefwall of the "housing 2-U, and those heads limitinwardmovement of '-the"=pins 2S to a predetermined distance. Anu'mberof radially-disposed "threttkd'ropehihgs 30 are provided in. the ivall'ofthe' cup shaped housing 28, and those "opriingsia'respacedvertically-above the pin-receivin openings-'26 The-ppen-ings 39 receivemachine screws 3 2 and the screws 3 2 ex- V tend through "openings -inthe upperendsof flat leaf springs 'ii'd'to nia intain those -springs inassembled relation with-th'e 1 ne te. Each *of the springsSA is shownasfia 'singla l eaf. Where desired, other typeset springs can he usedbut leaf springs are preferred as the most desirable from thes'tandpoints of compactness, length of I of the housing 28 is alsoprovided with circumferentially-spaced, radially-disposed, threadedopening-s 38and those openings receive machine screws 48.

The inner surface of the bottom of the housing 20 is made smooth, andthat surface receives a plurality of individual fingers or jaws 42. Eachof these fingers or jaws 42 has a multi-planar arcuate inner periphery44 and a slotted outer periphery 46. A slot 48 is provided in the outerperiphery 48 of each finger or jaw 42, and each of the slots 48terminates in a bi-planar surface 58. The sides of the fingers or jaws42 are plane and they are inclined relative to each other. Openings 52are provided in the sides of the jaws 42, and those openings are inregister with the openings 52 of adjacent fingers or jaws 42. Theopenings 52 in the jaws 42 are dimensioned to receive small diameter,helical springs 54 and the springs 54 are dimensioned to extend betweenadjacent jaws or fingers 42, as shown in Fig. 3. These fingers or jaws42 are particularly usable in sealing closures to containers which haveem larged portions adjacent the mouths thereof, because the innermostportions of the multiplanar peripheries 44 will press the closuresagainst the lower sections of those enlarged portions. Where the die isused to apply and seal closures to containers which are not providedwith enlarged portions adjacent the mouths thereof, the inner peripheryof each of the fingers 42 may have a different surface than that shownin the drawings and with a smooth-walled container, the innerperipheries of the fingers 42 may be smooth. In each instance, the innerperipheries of the fingers 42 should be complementary to the outerperiphery of the container so they can press the closure tightly againstthe container.

The fingers or jaws 42 can be made in various ways but they must be madeso they can be brought together to pressa closure against a container.Moreover, the fingers or jaws 42 must be made so they can apply smoothand uniform pressure around the entire periphery of the closure andcontainer. One certain and simple way of making the jaws 42 is tomachine an annulus with an inner diameter equal to the outer diameter ofa closure that is sealed onto a container and thereafter to out alongradii of the annulus to form the fingers or jaws 42. Where this is donethe fingers 42 can be held in retracted position, as shown in Fig. 3, topermit the insertion and removal of a container and closure through theopening 22 in the cup-like housing 28; or the fingers can be moved toextended position to again form an annulus with an inner diameter equalto the outer diameter of a closure that is sealed to a container. Inmaking the fingers or jaws 42 in this manner, openings 58 are formed inthe annulus to secure it to the metal working machine and thoseopeningsare shown in several of the fingers 42.

The multi-planar inner periphery 44 of each of the fingers or jaws 42,isvdimensioned to press a portion of a closure into sealing engagementwith s 6" the enlarged portion of a container, and those peripheries 44cooperate to press all sides of the closures into sealing engagementwith the containers. TheouterperipheriesAB of the fingers or jaws 42aremade tohave configurations approximately complementary-to the innersurface of the Wall of housing 28;:therefore the fingers can be pressedagainst that wall and still main-- taintheir properposition andorientation. The slots 48 in the rearperipheries 48 of the fingers 42are dimensioned to receive and telescope over the inner ends of the pins28, but the slots 48 are so much wider than the pins 28 that the pins donot impede radial movement of. the fingers 42- The fingers or jaws 42can move radially and circumferentially .of the housing 28 since theupper surface of the bottom of that housing is plane and smooth andsince the fingers 42 are biased apart as shown in Fig. 3. The springs54, which are seated in the openings 52 in the sides of the jaws 42andwhich extend between adjacent fingers or jaws .42, act to bias thejaws 42 for movement away from each other and radially.

outwardly'against the wall of the housing 28, but they are compressibleand extensible to permit the fingers or jaws 42 to'move toward and awayfrom each other. The pins 28, which extend into the slots 48 in theouter peripheries 48 of the fingers or jaws 42 will limit, but will notprevent, circumferential movementof the fingers 42 when those fingersare in retracted position. As a result, while the fingers or jaws 42will normally be held approximately in the position shown in Fig. 3,they will be movable radially and circumferentially relative to thatposition.

A castellated member is denoted by the numeral 58, and that member has aseries of axiallyextending, radially-disposed slots 6i) that provide thecastellated formation for the member 58. A circular recess 59 isprovided in the under side of the member 58, and that recess can receiveand fit over the top of a closure for containers. Many containers thatreceive closures, are provided with smoothly rounded mouths; and as aresult the edges of the recess 59 are smoothly rounded. Where the mouthsof the containers are not smoothly rounded, the edges of recess 59 neednot be so rounded. The castellated member 58 is dimensioned to fitsnugly within the cup-shaped housing 28; and threaded openings Bl areprovided in themember 58 to receive machine screws 40 that will hold thehousing 28 and the castellated member 58 in assembled relation. Acentral rod 81 is integrally secured to the castellated member 58, andthe upper end of that rod extends above the rest of the member 58. Anopening 88 is provided in the rod 61.

A heating element H, such as an electrical resistance heater which isprovided with leads 64 and 66, is positioned within an annular piece ofmetal 62; and the annulus 62 is intimately secured to the castellatedmember 58 by machine screws 63. The heating element H will heat thesurface of the recess 59 as well as all other parts of'the castellatedmember 58; and since the castellated member 58 is snugly fitted insideof the housing 28, heat from the heating element H will enter and heatthe housing 20.

Therod 81 is dimensioned to fit within the axial recess 10 of a hollowrod H that is a part of the cam carrier shown in Figs. 9 and 10. The rod8'! andthe recess 10 in the rod H are dimensioned to'permit readytelescoping movement of the rods 67 and 1 I The rod H is provided with aslot-TZ that extends through to the recess 18,

and that slot receives "a pin 14 carried by the transverse opening .68in the rod 61 of castel'lated member 58. A collar '16 is mounted on therod H of the cam carrier, and it is normally maintained in position onthat rod by a set screw H which is seated in thethreaded opening 1?. Thecam carrier has a transversely extending flange '58 which is integrallysecured to the hollow rod 1! and the flange 18 is provided. with aplurality of radially-disposed, .circumferentially-spaced slots 89. Theslots 80 receive the upper ends of vertically-disposed, elongated cams.82, and pins 84 are provided that extend through the upper ends of cams82 and extend to the walls of the slots so. The pins 84 maintain thecams .82 in assembled relation with the'cam carrier while permittingswinging of the cams 82 relative to the cam carrier. Each of the cams 82has an inner cam surface 85 and an outer cam surface as. The inner camsurface 85 has a relatively steep cam face which provides quickactuation, and the outer cam surface 85 has a relatively shallow camface that provides slower actuation.

The earns 32, that are pivoted totjhe flan e 78 of the cam carrier bythe pins 8%, can swing about the axes provided by those pins. Inaddition, by reason of machining tolerances, the earns 82 will be ableto tilt slightly from side to side. This tilting of the cams will belimited, but not completely prevented, by the casteliated portions ofthe member 58 that form the slots 69. Consequently, even when the cams.32 are in the position shown in Fig. '1, those cams can tilt to alimited degree. The lower ends of the earns 82 extend into the slotsIii; in the outer peripheries so of the fingers or jaws 42 and the slotsd8 are dimensioned relative to the ends of the cams 82 topermit tiltingof the cams 8.2 relative to the fingers 42 and to permit limitedcircumferential movement of the fingers or jaws 152 relative to the cams82. The inner cam surfaces 85 will bear against the loiplanar surfaces53 at the inner ends of the slots 48 of the jaws c2, and the outer camsurfaces 86 will bear against the inner ends of the pins .28 during theoperation, wherein a closure is afiixed to a container. The cams 82 areso dimensioned relative to the fingers 42 and the pins as that when thefingers or jaws 42 are in retracted position, as shown in Fig. 3, thecams 82 will not press against the biplane-r surfaces 59 at the innerends of the slots E8 of the lingers 32. This initial spacing between thecams 82 and the surfaces 50 is due to the fact that the enlarged headsof the pinsZB, which are held against the wall of the housing 20 by theleaf springs 3%, act to hold the inner ends of the pins 28 againstfurther inward movement; that spacing is also due to the fact that thedepth of the slots 48 is greater than the combined length of the pins 23and the width of the small-thickness ends of cams 82. As a result, whenthe jaws 42 are in retracted position, the outer peripheries 46 thereofcan bear against the inner surface of the wall of the housing 20 andthis arrangement facilitates the maintenance of the fingers 42 inproperly oriented position relative to the opening 22 in the housing 2!The outer peripheries 4t of the fingers or jaws t2 are cutto a smallerradius than is the inner surface of the housing 29, but that diflerencehas not been found to cause improper orientation of the jaws 42. r

In assembling the various elements of the die, the pins 28 are seated inthe opening 2% of the housing 20, and the leaf springs 34 and washers 36are secured to the housing 20, by the machine screws 52. The fingers orjaws 42 are then placed within the housing 28 so the slots 48 thereoftelescope over the inner ends of the pins 28, and the springs 54 arecompressed and slipped into the openings 52 of jaws 52. Thereafter, thecastellated member 58, which has had the heatercontaining annu1us'62secured thereto by screws E3, is telescoped within the housing 20. Thescrews ie are then rotated until they seat in the openings 33' and 65,thus securing the castellated member 58 and the housing 29 together.Once this-has been done, a compression spring 69 is placed within recess'iii'of the rod ll andthe cam carrier, with its previously attached cams82, is lowered until the recess it telescopes over the rod 6?- and untilthe cams 82 pass through the slots 5%; and extend between the pins'28and the surfaces 50. A slight downward force is exerted on the upper endof rod ii to compress the spring 69 in the recess fit and to bringtheopening 83 in register with the, slot 2; at this time the pin id ispassed through the slot 12 into the opening 435, The collar 76 isthereupon secured to the rod '32, and the die is ready for use. Thepin'id and the slot i2 hold the elements of the die in assembled relationbut perm-it reciprocation of the cam carrier relative to thecastellatedmember E58 and housing 20,

When the various elements of the die are assembled, as shown in Fig. 1,the fingers or laws #22 are free to move to a slight extent relative toeach other because of the tolerances between the cams 82 and the fingerst2, because of the tolerance between the slots. '69 and the earns 82,and because of the tolerance between the cams 82 and the slots 8t of theflange 73. However. the fingers or jaws 42 will "normally beat rest andwill normally. be held in spaced relation relative to each other by thehelical springs 54 that are seated in the openings 52 in the sides ofthe fingers or jaws 4-1. The pins .28 will fit Within the slots 48, ofthe fingers 42 and will prevent undue shifting of the fingers 12, butwill not prevent slight movement of those fingers relative to eachother. Similarly, the ends of the cams 82 will fit within the slots 43in the fingers t2 and will assist in preventing undue shifting of thosefingers, but will not prevent limited movement of those fingers or jaws.The leaf springs 34 will press against the enlarged heads of the pins 28with considerable force and will tend to hold the pins 28 againstmovement outwardly of the housing 28, but the pins 28 are short enoughso the earns 32 do not press against the fin ers 42 when the earns 82and the fingers 42 are in retracted position. The retracted position ofthe cam carrier and the cams 82 is attained by the compression springthat is positioned in the recess it of the hollow rod H of the camcarrier and bears against the top of the rod 81 of the castellatedmember58. This spring causes the cam carrier to rise upwardly relative to therod 57, but suitable application of force to the rod i! will causecompression of the spring in the recess it. When the cams 82 are inretracted position, the jaws 4 2 will also be in retracted position,because of the action of the helical springs 54!; and in that positionthe fingers or jaws G2 will rest against the inner surface of the wallof the housing 28.

Upon movement of the cam carrier downwardly, as by suitable applicationof force to the rod H or the collar 16 thereon, the cams 82 will'moverelative to the bi-planar surfaces 59 at the inner ends of the'slots- 48of the fingers or jaws 42. The inner cam surfaces 85, which aredisplaced downwardly below the outer cam-surfaces 86, upon thefirststage of the downward movement, will cause the cams 82 to exertforces on the inner ends of the pins-28 and'on the biplanar surfaces 53of the fingers 42; 28 will be held in position by such firm pressurefrom th leaf springs, 34 that they will not move until after the fingersor jaws 42 move; and this stage of downward movement of the'cam ,carrier will cause the inner surfaces 85 of the cams 82 to act against thesurfaces 50 and force the fingers 42 to mov inwardly toward thegeometric center of the housing 20. -.As the cam carrier continues tomove downwardly, the outer cam surfaces 85 will come into action andagain the pins 28 will be held against movement. Not until the fingersor jaws42 have reached the inner limits of their travel will thepressure exerted by the cams 82 be great enough to cause the Springs 34to yield and permit outward movement of the pins 28. The outer limits oftravel of the fingers or jaws 42 are determinedso that there will stillbe slight gaps between adjacent jaws 42 when the jaws are in contactwith the closure on a container that extends upwardly through theaperture 22 in the housing 28. Consequently the fingers 42 willbepressing against the closure rather than just. pressing against eachother. At this time the springs 54 will be wholly within the openings 52of adjacent jaws 42.

As soon as the jaws or fingers 42 touch the closure on the container, apressure will be applied that will press the closure tightly against thecontainer, and when that pressure reaches a predetermined value, furtherinward movement of the fingers or jaws 42 will cease. Thereafter,continued downward movement of the cam carrier will force the pins 28outwardly and will force the springs 34to bend and yield. The cams 82above the cam surfaces 85 and 88, are provided with gradual tapers thatprogressively increase the width of those cams; once the cam surfaces 85and 88 have passed between the biplanar surfaces of the fingers 42 and.the inner surfaces of the pins 28, the tapered surfaces of the cams 82will begin to act. Thosetapers will cause further bending of the springs34, and thus will cause the exertion of, even greater pressures on thefingers 42. However, th earns 82 and spring 34 are dimensioned so eventhe greatest pressure exertable by the fingers or jaws .42 on acontainer inserted through the aperture 22 is insufficient to causebreakage, cracking or chipping of that container. The exact pressure ineach instance will have to be determined in view of the size and typeofclosure and the size,

shape and strength of the container; but springs 34 that have exertedpressures of from thirty (80). to one hundred (100) pounds have beenfound to be satisfactory in sealing closures to beer bottles and milkbottles The successive actions of the various surfaces on the cams82provide extremely rapid movemember 58, and they are also in registerwith The pins 10 the cams 82. Consequently the cams 82 can movedownwardly as far as is, needed to move the fingers orjaws 42. r V 'IThe heating element I-I carried by the ca'stellated member 58 will heatall portions of that .member, including the surfaces of the recess 59.

In addition, that element will heat the housing 20 which is in intimatecontact with the member 58. 'Moreover, heat from thebottom of the member58 and heat from the sides and bottom of the housing 20 will pass to thefingers or jaws 42' that are immediately adjacent the member 58 and thehousing 20. As a result, the fingers 42 and the recess 59 in the bottomof the castellated member 58 will possess suflicient heat .to sealclosures to containers as they press and hol those closures against thecontainers. The exact amount of heat required willvary in each case andwill be determined by the'size, thickness and nature of the closure, thecharacteristics of the adhesive or cement used with the closure, and thesize, has ture, and initial temperature of. the containers. In mostinstances, the rate at which closuresare to be applied and sealed to thecontainers will be relatively constant, and the closures, adhesives andcontainers will be constant; and in'those cases an unregulated heatingelement can be used- For example, unregulated heating elements have beenused to apply and afiix closures to beer bottles and milk bottles. Inother instances, where variables are to be expected, a

rheostat or other device (not shown) can be inserted between the heatingelement H and the source of electricity to vary the heating effect.

In addition, if desired, a thermostat (not shown) could be mounted on-orin the annulus 62"to maintain the temperature of the die at a predecamcarrier upwardly, thus permittingiheleaf springs34 to move the pins28inwardly until their enlarged heads press against the wall of the hous-'ing 28, and also permitting the helical springs 54 to cause thefingers42 to move away from'the closure on the container and toward the Wall:of the housing 20. This permits removal of the container from the die.

As the fingers 42 move inwardly toward the closure, under the action ofcams 82, those fingers may contact the closure at different times,ybe-

cause of slight tilting of the container or slight out-of-roundness ofthe closure or because the closure may be initially wrinkled or crimpedto facilitate pressing it against the container while it is being sealedto the container. In such; cases, the time-intervals betweenthe contactsof the jaws 42 with the various portions of the closure will be almostinfinitesimal because the fingers or jaws 42 move quite rapidly; butthose intervals will be large enough to permit some displacement andcircumferential movement of one or moreof th fingers or jaws 42. Thisdisplacement and circumferential movement can continueas the fingers orjaws 42 move radially inwardly toward the closure on the container; andin some in.- stances the circumferential movement will occur,

because of variations in the stiffness of difierent sections of theclosures, even though all of the jaws 42 contact the closures at thesame instant. This circumferential movement of the fingers 42 isof valuebecause it enables the fingers 42 to give an added smoothing 01',ironing action to the sures, thus facilitating the attainment of firmand complete seals between the closures and the containers. Thiscircumferential movement of the fingers o1- jaws 42 is of course notunlimited, but it. is of great value.

The large central opening 22 of the housing that receives the containerand the closures thereon, and the circumferentially spaced openings 24that receive the ends of earns 82 when they move downwardly; permitcleaning and free-draining of the die in the event it is frequentlywashed, as it must be in a brewery, dairy, or other places wherecomestibles are bottled. The vertically extending slots 60 of thecastellated member 58 facilitate free draining of that member, and theopen character and vertical disposition of the cams B2 and leaf springs34 promote free draining of the die. One of the few places where foreignmatter could lodge is the openings 52 in the jaws or fingers G2, but therecurrent expansion and contraction of the helical springs 55 woulddislodge such matter and work it out of, the openings 52. Consequently,thedle is exceptionally clean in operation and maintenance.

It will be noted that the fingers or jaws 42 in their retractedposition, form an interrupted annulus that is coextensive with theannular bottom of the housing 20, thus obviating any wasted space.Moreover, it will be noted that the leaf springs 34 lie close to thehousing 20'. As a result, it is possible to make the die compact enoughso it can be used with the multiple spindle machines that are presentlybeing used to afiix closures to containers.

The bi-planar surfaces 59 at the inner ends of the slots 48 of thefingers 42 facilitate. the action of cams 82. The inclined portions ofthose surfaces cooperate with inner cam surfaces 8 5 to provide smoothapplications of force to th fingers 42, and the vertical portions ofthose surfaces cooperate with the tapers of the cams 82 to exertpressure on the fingers 42 and the pins 28.

The electrical leads 64 and 65 of the heating element 52 are connectedto a suitable source of current, not shown. Those leads can extend up.-wardly through the space between any two cams 82 and thus be free fromany danger of entanglement or injury.

As" the cam carrier moves downwardly relative to the housing 20, thecams 82 will rotate inwardly and cause the jaws or fingers 42 to movepromptly into contact with the closures on the containers. Thereafter,as the cams 82 continue to move downwardly under the force applied tothe rod H or collar 16 of the cam carrier, the

cams 82 will swing outwardly and cause bend- 12 should be apparent tothose skilled in the art that various changes can be made in the form ofthe invention without affecting the scope thereof.

This application is a substitute for my prior abandoned applicationfiled March 5, 1947, Serial No. 732,553.

I claim:

1. A die that is adapted to secure closures to containers whichcomprises a plurality of reciprocable fingers that are circumferentiallyand radially spaced to receive a container and are movable toward andaway from said container, means operable to move'said fingers towardsaid container, said means including a plurality of pivotally mountedaxially movable actuators that engage said fingers, said actuators beingnarrower than said fingers, and said fingers and actuators havinginteracting surfaces permitting circumferential movement of said fingersas the fingers move radially of said container, and resilient membersinterposed between said fingers respectively and biasing them apartwhile permitting circumferential movement of said fingers.

2'. A die for securing closures to the tops of containers comprising ahousing having an in terior bottom wall with an opening for thereception of the top of the container, a plurality of reciprocablefingers circumferentially and radially spaced and supported by saidbottom wall and movable towards and away from said container top, a camcarrier vertically movable with respect to said housing and havingmounted thereon a downwardly extending cam bar for each of said fingers,each of said cam bars having an outer cam surface and an inner camsurface, a resilient member carried by said housing for each of saidfingers, and a pin interposed between each of said resilient members andthe outer cam surface of the corres czond-ing cam bar, the inner surfaceof each cam bar engaging the corresponding finger for moving the sameinwardly.

3. A die for securing closures to the tops of containers comprising acircular housing having an interior bottom wall with an axial openingfor the reception of the top of the container, a plurality ofreciprocable fingers circumferentially and radially spaced and supportedby said bottom wall and movable towards and away from said containertop, a cam carrier vertically axially movable with respectto saidhousing and having movably mounted thereon a downwardly extending cambar for each of said fingers, each of said cam bars having an outer camsurface and an inner camsurface, a resilient member on the exterior ofsaid housing for each of said fingers, a pin interposed between each ofsaid resilient members and the outer cam surface of the correspondingcam bar, the inner surface of each cam bar engaging the correspondingfinger for moving the same inwardly, and a plurality of resilientmembers interposed between said fingers and biasing them apart whilepermitting circumferential movement of said fingers.

4. A die for securing closures to the tops of containers comprising acircular housing having aninterior horizontal bottom wall with anopening for the reception of the top of the container, a plurality ofreciprocable fingers circumferentially and radially spaced and supportedby said bottom wall and movable towards and away from said containertop, a cam carrier vertically axially movable with respect to saidhousing and having loosely pivotally' mounted thereon a downwardlyextending cam bar for each of said fingers, each of said cam. barshaving an outer cam surface at a predetermined location and an inner camsurface at a predetermined lower location with tapered surfacesthereabove, a leaf spring mounted at one end on the exterior of saidhousing for each of said fingers, a pin interposed between the other endof each of said leaf springs and the outer cam surface of thecorresponding cam bar, the inner surface of each cam bar engaging thecorresponding finger for moving the same inwardly.

5. A die for securing closures to containers comprising a central memberhaving an upwardly extending axially disposed rod, said member having onthe lower side thereof a central recess for the reception of a closure"and the mouth of a container and having on the outer portion thereof aplurality of axially extending slots, a heating element in said memberabove said central recess, a cam carrier mounted on said rod for axialmovement, said cam carrier having mounted thereon a plurality ofdownwardly extending cam bars movable in said slots, said cam bars atthe lower end portions having inner and outer cam surfaces with taperedsurfaces thereabove, a

housing having a side wall portion enclosing said central member andsaid cam bars and having a bottom wall with an opening for the receptionof the top of the closure, a plurality of reciprocablc fingers one foreach of said cam bars circumferentially and radially spaced andsupported by said bottom wall and movable towards and away from saidclosure top, each of said fingers having an inner closure engaging endand an outer end for engagement by the inner cam surface of thecorresponding cam bar, a resilient member for each of said fingersmounted on said housing, and radially disposed pins interposed betweeneach of said resilient members and the outer cam surface of thecorresponding cam bar. 1

6. A die for securing closures to containers 7 comprising a centralmember having an upwardly for the reception of a closure and the mouthof a container and having on the outer circumferential portion thereof aplurality of axially extending slots, a heating element in said memberabove said central recess, a cam carrier mounted on said rod for axialmovement, a spring interposed. between said rod and said cam carrier,said cam carrier having loosely pivotally mounted thereon a plurality ofdownwardly extending cam bars movable in said slots, said cam bars atthe lower end portions having inner and outer cam surfaces with taperedsurfaces thereabove, a housing having an axially extending side Wallportion enclosing said central member and said cam bars and a bottomwall with an opening for the reception of the top of the closure, aplurality of reciprocable fingers one for each of said cam barscircumierentially and radially spaced and supported by said bottom walland movable towards and away from said closure top, a plurality ofresilient members interposed between said members and urging them apart,each of said fingers having an inner closure engaging end and an outerend for engagement by the inner cam surface of the corresponding cambar, a leaf spring member for each of said fingers mounted at one end onthe exterior of said side wall portion, radially disposed pinsinterposed between each of said resilientmembers and the outer camsurface of the corresponding cam bar, said pins having stops forlimiting the inward movement thereof.

GEORGE W. STOCKBURGER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are'of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 892,988 Godman July 14, 1908994,179 Meyer June 6, 1911 1,060,201 Meyer Apr. 29, 1913

